CHAPTER-2
Socialism in Europe and the Russian Revolution
Extra Questions
1. What were the view points of the liberals?
i) Liberals wanted a nation which tolerated all religions.
They opposed the uncontrolled power of dynastic rulers and wanted to safeguard the rights of
individuals against governments.
ii) Liberals argued for a representative, elected parliamentary government, subject to laws
interpreted by a well-trained judiciary that was independent of rulers and officials.
iii) However, they were not ‘democrats’. They did not believe in universal adult franchise. They felt
men of property mainly should have the vote.
2. What were the view points of the radicals?
i) Radicals wanted a nation in which government was based on the majority of a country’s
population. Many supported women’s suffragette movements.
ii) Unlike liberals, they opposed the privileges of great landowners and wealthy factory owners.
iii) They were not against the existence of private property but disliked the concentration of property
in the hands of a few.
3. What were the view points of the conservatives?
i) Earlier in the eighteenth century, conservatives had been generally opposed to the idea of
change. They did not want any change in the existing system.
ii) BY the nineteenth century, they accepted that some change was inevitable but believed that the
past had to be respected and change had to be brought about through a slow process.
4. What changes did the industrialization bring to the then society?
i) It was a time of profound social and economic changes; new cities came up and new industrial
regions developed, railways expanded and the Industrial Revolution occurred.
ii) Industrialization brought men, women and children to factories. Working hours were often long
and wages were very low.
iii) Unemployment was common, particularly during times of low demand for industrial goods.
Housing and sanitation were problems since towns were growing rapidly.
5. What were the different visions of socialism?
i) Robert Owen(1771-1858), a leading English manufacturer, sought to build a cooperative
community called New Harmony in Indiana(USA).
ii) Louis Blanc (1813-1882) wanted the government to encourage cooperatives and replace capitalist
enterprises. Large number of people voluntarily contribute to start a business for welfare of
people.
iii) Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) added other ideas to this body of
arguments. Marx argued that industrial society was ‘capitalist’. Capitalists owned the capital
invested in factories and the profit of capitalists was produced by workers. The conditions of
workers could not improve as long as this profit was accumulated by private capitalists. Workers
1
, had to overthrow capitalism and the rule of private property. Marx believed that to free themselves
from capitalist exploitation, workers had to construct a radically socialist society where all
property was socially controlled.
6. What was the Second International?
By the 1870s, socialist ideas spread through Europe. To coordinate their efforts, socialists formed an
international body called the second international.
7. What were the events preceding the 1905 Revolution?
OR
What were the immediate causes of the 1905 Revolution?
i) The year 1904 was a particularly bad one for Russian Workers. Prices of essential goods rose up
quickly that real wages declined by 20 per cent.
ii) The membership of workers association rose dramatically. When four members of the Assembly
of Russian Workers were dismissed at the Putilov Iron Works, there was a call for industrial
action.
iii) Over the next few days, over 110,000 workers in St Petersburg went on strike demanding a
reduction in the working day to eight hours, an increase in wages and improvement in working
conditions.
iv) When the procession of workers led by Father Gapon reached the Winter Palace, it was attacked
by the police and the Cossacks. Over 100 workers were killed and about 300 wounded. The
incident was known as Bloody Sunday. This started a series of events that became known as the
1905 revolution.
v) Strikes took place all over the country and universities closed down when student bodies staged
walkouts, complaining the lack of civil liberties. Lawyers, doctors, engineers and other middle-
class workers established the Union of Unions and demanded a constituent assembly.
8. In what ways were social democrats and social revolutionaries different in their approach?
i) The Socialist Revolutionary party struggled for peasants ’rights and demanded that land belonging
to nobles be transferred to peasants.
ii) Social Democrats disagreed with socialist revolutionaries about peasants. Lenin felt that peasants
were not one united group. Some were poor and others were rich, some worked as labourers while
others were capitalists who employed workers. Given this differentiation within them, they could
not all be part of a socialist movement.
9. Explain the results of the 1905 Revolution.
OR
Describe any two reforms introduced by Tsar Nicholas II after the 1905 Revolution.
i) During the 1905 Revolution, the Tsar allowed the creation of an elected consultative parliament or
Duma. For a brief while during the revolution, there existed a large number of trade unions and
factory committees made up of factory workers.
ii) The Tsar dismissed the first Duma within 75 days and the re-elected second Duma within three
months. He did not want any questioning of his authority or any reduction in his power.
iii) He changed the voting laws and packed the third Duma with conservative politicians. Liberals and
revolutionaries were kept out.
2
Socialism in Europe and the Russian Revolution
Extra Questions
1. What were the view points of the liberals?
i) Liberals wanted a nation which tolerated all religions.
They opposed the uncontrolled power of dynastic rulers and wanted to safeguard the rights of
individuals against governments.
ii) Liberals argued for a representative, elected parliamentary government, subject to laws
interpreted by a well-trained judiciary that was independent of rulers and officials.
iii) However, they were not ‘democrats’. They did not believe in universal adult franchise. They felt
men of property mainly should have the vote.
2. What were the view points of the radicals?
i) Radicals wanted a nation in which government was based on the majority of a country’s
population. Many supported women’s suffragette movements.
ii) Unlike liberals, they opposed the privileges of great landowners and wealthy factory owners.
iii) They were not against the existence of private property but disliked the concentration of property
in the hands of a few.
3. What were the view points of the conservatives?
i) Earlier in the eighteenth century, conservatives had been generally opposed to the idea of
change. They did not want any change in the existing system.
ii) BY the nineteenth century, they accepted that some change was inevitable but believed that the
past had to be respected and change had to be brought about through a slow process.
4. What changes did the industrialization bring to the then society?
i) It was a time of profound social and economic changes; new cities came up and new industrial
regions developed, railways expanded and the Industrial Revolution occurred.
ii) Industrialization brought men, women and children to factories. Working hours were often long
and wages were very low.
iii) Unemployment was common, particularly during times of low demand for industrial goods.
Housing and sanitation were problems since towns were growing rapidly.
5. What were the different visions of socialism?
i) Robert Owen(1771-1858), a leading English manufacturer, sought to build a cooperative
community called New Harmony in Indiana(USA).
ii) Louis Blanc (1813-1882) wanted the government to encourage cooperatives and replace capitalist
enterprises. Large number of people voluntarily contribute to start a business for welfare of
people.
iii) Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) added other ideas to this body of
arguments. Marx argued that industrial society was ‘capitalist’. Capitalists owned the capital
invested in factories and the profit of capitalists was produced by workers. The conditions of
workers could not improve as long as this profit was accumulated by private capitalists. Workers
1
, had to overthrow capitalism and the rule of private property. Marx believed that to free themselves
from capitalist exploitation, workers had to construct a radically socialist society where all
property was socially controlled.
6. What was the Second International?
By the 1870s, socialist ideas spread through Europe. To coordinate their efforts, socialists formed an
international body called the second international.
7. What were the events preceding the 1905 Revolution?
OR
What were the immediate causes of the 1905 Revolution?
i) The year 1904 was a particularly bad one for Russian Workers. Prices of essential goods rose up
quickly that real wages declined by 20 per cent.
ii) The membership of workers association rose dramatically. When four members of the Assembly
of Russian Workers were dismissed at the Putilov Iron Works, there was a call for industrial
action.
iii) Over the next few days, over 110,000 workers in St Petersburg went on strike demanding a
reduction in the working day to eight hours, an increase in wages and improvement in working
conditions.
iv) When the procession of workers led by Father Gapon reached the Winter Palace, it was attacked
by the police and the Cossacks. Over 100 workers were killed and about 300 wounded. The
incident was known as Bloody Sunday. This started a series of events that became known as the
1905 revolution.
v) Strikes took place all over the country and universities closed down when student bodies staged
walkouts, complaining the lack of civil liberties. Lawyers, doctors, engineers and other middle-
class workers established the Union of Unions and demanded a constituent assembly.
8. In what ways were social democrats and social revolutionaries different in their approach?
i) The Socialist Revolutionary party struggled for peasants ’rights and demanded that land belonging
to nobles be transferred to peasants.
ii) Social Democrats disagreed with socialist revolutionaries about peasants. Lenin felt that peasants
were not one united group. Some were poor and others were rich, some worked as labourers while
others were capitalists who employed workers. Given this differentiation within them, they could
not all be part of a socialist movement.
9. Explain the results of the 1905 Revolution.
OR
Describe any two reforms introduced by Tsar Nicholas II after the 1905 Revolution.
i) During the 1905 Revolution, the Tsar allowed the creation of an elected consultative parliament or
Duma. For a brief while during the revolution, there existed a large number of trade unions and
factory committees made up of factory workers.
ii) The Tsar dismissed the first Duma within 75 days and the re-elected second Duma within three
months. He did not want any questioning of his authority or any reduction in his power.
iii) He changed the voting laws and packed the third Duma with conservative politicians. Liberals and
revolutionaries were kept out.
2
