This topic is about the Russian revolutions - their contexts, causes and initial results. It covers the period from the end of serfdom and the industrialisation of Russia in the late nineteenth century through to forced collectivisation in 1929-30. In doing so, it will examine five distinct revolutions between 1860 and 1930. At the beginning and the end of the period, two 'revolutions from above': the abolition of serfdom and the destruction of the peasantry. In between, three revolutions from below: the 'dress rehearsal' of 1905, the downfall of the Tsar in 1917 and the establishment of Soviet power in the same year. Students will be able to study the objective and subjective causes of these events, and their contribution to the shape of the Soviet state which existed until 1991.
This topic aims to:
Timetable details for 2021 are no longer published.