Question 5

Why did the 1905 Revolution fail?

PARAGRAPH ONE

• One reason for the failure of the 1905 Revolution lay in the composition of the forces opposed to the Tsar.
• These consisted of urban workers, peasants, bourgeois Liberals, sailors and Marxist revolutionaries.
• The movement as a whole, though, lacked unity and would be easily divided and defeated once the Tsar developed a suitable strategy.
• The effectiveness of the Tsar’s response is the second factor – concession of a Duma was enough to defuse the situation.
• Meanwhile the return of regular army units from the East, combined with the Okhrana, would be enough to crush the more determined revolutionaries.
• A third reason was that the autocratic principle held firm – even the protesters on ‘Bloody Sunday’ carried pictures of the Tsar to show their loyalty.

PARAGRAPH TWO

• It took the Tsar some time to respond. However, in his October Manifesto he offered the people an elected Duma.
• This divided his opponents. The Liberals were delighted but the revolutionary groups were suspicious, and with good reason.

PARAGRAPH THREE

• Father Gapon’s campaign ended in failure.
• The Tsar ran away and when he came back he took tough action against the leaders of the soviets.