Many underlying factors contributed to nationalistic
sentiments throughout the people of Russia.
The feelings of Nationalism in Russian citizens always present in their society. They were known as a very proud, patriotic and nationalistic country. The problems came when they people of Russia began to believe that the system did not favour them, and that the Tzar no longer cared for them as a social group. Their feelings of Nationalism drove them to defend themselves and strive for a better and stronger Russia. The petitions they carried stated:
"Oh Sire, we working men and inhabitants of St. Petersburg, our wives, our children and our parents, helpless and aged women and men, have come to You our ruler, in search of justice and protection. We are beggars, we are oppressed and overburdened with work, we are insulted, we are not looked on as human beings but as slaves. The moment has come for us when death would be better than the prolongation of our intolerable sufferings.
We are seeking here our last salvation. Do not refuse to help Your people. Destroy the wall between Yourself and Your people."
The people of Russia were begging the Tsar to acknowledge them as his people and his responsibility. In this sentiment they ask the ruler of Russia to respect their contribution to Russia as a nation and to represent them. At the time, Nicholas II represented Russia, and so the people were in a sense begging Russia to represent its people. When the Tsar did not respond, the people rose against him to create a Russia that would recognize them as a nation. This lack of recognition caused people to not only take things into their own hands, but also lose respect for their Tsar. They no longer saw him as representing them, they saw him as representing the obstacle between themselves and their ideal society. The people's sense of nationalism was shifting from the current Russia they lived in and instead becoming a sense of pride and nationalism towards the Russia they hoped to achieve. They began to see the Tsar and his family as an obstacle and an enemy. This can be best be represented by the quote:
"The present ruler has lost absolutely the affection of the Russian people, and whatever the future may have in store for the dynasty, the present tsar will never again be safe in the midst of his people."
- The American consul in Odessa
- Social factors included the want of a soviet society, where people could decide their own political system to represent them. They were tired of watching their people starve while the Tsars ate and drank the finest of foods off of plates made of solid gold. Rumours spreading about the Tsarina's relationship with Rasputin also affected the peoples respect of their royals. The most influential social factor was simply the loss of respect for the royal family. Without the loyalty of the people, the Romanovs could not maintain their sovereign power over Russia. Even their own soldiers sworn to protect them were now fighting against the Tsar and expressing their desire for a different political system that represented their needs as a society.
- Political factors were major in the change of nationalistic sentiments. Rasputin being put in control of major political Russian movements was not well received well by the people or the aristocrats. The loss of respect for the royals was also a blow to the political power of the Tsar. Without respect they could not maintain the power that they had managed to keep for over 300 years. Vladimir Lenin was also gaining support for his soviet revolution. He and his Bolshevik followers were gaining support as they represented the working class. The working class was the largest group in Russia and having a political that favoured them over the aristocrats was greatly supported. Historically, the Tsar had been seen as divine and almost as "God on earth." When this began to change, the historical and religious teachings that had been a way of life for centuries were now crumbling. Not only was the political structure on the verge of change, but historical teachings and ways of life were falling apart as well.
- Geographically, Russia is a very cold place and therefore people were running out of food quicker. The lack of food was a major instigator towards the people’s anger. Also contributing to the lack of food was Russia’s lack of economic stability. Wars have a tendency to boost an economy but the recent loss at war had not done this for Russia. The people had no money and the economy had no money to support the rising population. The money that Russia did have was not spent on the people and instead was spent towards luxury for the royal family and towards the war still being fought in Germany.
The feelings of Nationalism in Russian citizens always present in their society. They were known as a very proud, patriotic and nationalistic country. The problems came when they people of Russia began to believe that the system did not favour them, and that the Tzar no longer cared for them as a social group. Their feelings of Nationalism drove them to defend themselves and strive for a better and stronger Russia. The petitions they carried stated:
"Oh Sire, we working men and inhabitants of St. Petersburg, our wives, our children and our parents, helpless and aged women and men, have come to You our ruler, in search of justice and protection. We are beggars, we are oppressed and overburdened with work, we are insulted, we are not looked on as human beings but as slaves. The moment has come for us when death would be better than the prolongation of our intolerable sufferings.
We are seeking here our last salvation. Do not refuse to help Your people. Destroy the wall between Yourself and Your people."
The people of Russia were begging the Tsar to acknowledge them as his people and his responsibility. In this sentiment they ask the ruler of Russia to respect their contribution to Russia as a nation and to represent them. At the time, Nicholas II represented Russia, and so the people were in a sense begging Russia to represent its people. When the Tsar did not respond, the people rose against him to create a Russia that would recognize them as a nation. This lack of recognition caused people to not only take things into their own hands, but also lose respect for their Tsar. They no longer saw him as representing them, they saw him as representing the obstacle between themselves and their ideal society. The people's sense of nationalism was shifting from the current Russia they lived in and instead becoming a sense of pride and nationalism towards the Russia they hoped to achieve. They began to see the Tsar and his family as an obstacle and an enemy. This can be best be represented by the quote:
"The present ruler has lost absolutely the affection of the Russian people, and whatever the future may have in store for the dynasty, the present tsar will never again be safe in the midst of his people."
- The American consul in Odessa
Contributing factors
Rasputin- The control given to Rasputin and his questionable actions contributed largely to the peoples revolution. In the song Rasputin ( You can hear the song on the first page) the lyrics state "But when his drinking and lusting and his hunger for power became known to more and more people, the demands to do something about this outrageous man became louder and louder." Alexandra was trying to help her son, but accidently sparked anger in not only the lower class, but also the upper class that the Tzar and Tzarina depended on for political, financial and military support.
The shootings in Petrograd- In 1905, on a day known as "Bloody Sunday" a group of royal guards fired on a group of protestors outside a royal palace in Petrograd. The result was between 600- 1000 deaths. This is widely regarded as a huge contributing factor in the revolution of 1917. The tzar had fired on his own people and therefor created a rift between the people and himself. It caused the people to start to question who's Russia it was. The Tzar ruled and ran Russia in his own way, even killing the lower class if they protested against the system, yet the working class was the largest portion of Russia. They began to petition for a system that represented their interests and views and not just the Tzars and the nobles.
The Flower- When the soldiers come to Petrograd to attempt to quell the rebellion, they were hesitant to harm the protestors. The soldiers were Russian people as well and saw the protestors as comrades with similar nationalistic view to their own. During a stand-still, a young girl walked to one of the senior commanders and gave him a flower from under her coat. The commander then decided that the soldiers would not fight the protestors and many even joined their cause. This event is significant in understanding the perspectives on nationalism that were most prevalent in the revolution. The people of Russia whether soldier or working class citizen, were all united under commonalities that allowed them to relate with one another and work together towards the common goal. In this case, that goal was a new Russia.
Expressions of nationalism
The people of Russia expressed their feelings of Nationalism through protests, joining of political groups and mutiny. The people of the working class used rallies and protests to express their displeasure with the current social ,political and economic system. There use of large masses and pickets allowed them to get there message across to others that felt the same way. This allowed them to gain supporters for their cause and ultimately made the overthrow of the government quicker and more efficient. Political groups like the Bolsheviks and several other Socialist and Marxist based systems sprung up in the time of revolution. These groups were expressing their sense of political nationalism and new-found political freedom following the fall of the Tsar. Soldiers were angry that they were being ordered to kill those that they considered comrades. They realized that the protestors had similar nationalistic and patriotic views as them, and that killing them would mean killing people that were fighting for the soldiers rights as well. Mutiny was the result of this expression and many commanders lost all or most of their men by the second day of their intervention on Petrograd. The soldiers entered the petitions and became a part of the protests. As a whole, the Russian people expressed their feelings of nationalism by realizing that the system did not favor them, and doing something about it. They found people with similar or identical nationalistic views and through the power of protests and strategy, managed to overthrow a regime that had been in place for centuries in a matter of months.