Rebellion, Reform and Modernisation

In this podcast Professor Peter Waldron of the University of East Anglia looks at Tsarist Russia 1855-1914. How effectively did Russia's rulers respond to pressures for change during this period?

1. What were the pressures on the Russian ruling elite? Russia's international position. The Crimean war.
2. Domestic pressures. A backward economy, pressure to modernise.
3. The threat of popular discontent.
4. Inconsistent responses from the Tsars: Reform and reaction.
5. Assassination and terrorism. Alexander III authoritarian response.
6. 1890s Russian industrialisation takes off and massive urban growth.
7. Nicholas II - the 1905 Revolution/War with Japan.
8. Russian Tsars unsure how to deal with modernisation, the desire to maintain power and short sightedness.

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